What should I say to the Mormons?

Wow, thank you so much for sharing your experience Qcmber. I didn't know we had any LDS on the board. I'm sorry you've had such a rough experience. Your story does give me hope that someday my best friend will honestly examine why I left the JWs.

Unfortunately, I had an emergency this afternoon and had to leave the house. I left a note for the girls apologizing and they left me their phone number. I'll set up another time with them next week.

I reread what I wrote and I guess it does sound like I'm still in a bad place....I should balance that. I don't have guilt anymore, I never realised how much of my life was overshadowed by feelings of not being good enough, not being 'worthy' and so on. I have to say I feel like a weight has been lifted off me. The hurt that is left now is more frustration /sadness that I was fooled and that all my religious aspirations had no chance of ever being met!

All in all I'm happier than I've been for a very long time. It's odd that when I thought I was the happiest I was actually nowhere near. Now I'm excited and feel more alive than I have for years.

Just a side point but I'm fairly sure that the last significant articles the Watchtower published on Mormonism were in the first Awake! mag' which had the new masthead. You know, the one that replaced the Creators promise of paradise before the 1914 generation passed away.

I always thought that was pretty sneaky as it's no secret that the R&F have a significant curiosity about the only other well known doorstep preachers. Using the Mormons as a diversionary tactic?

From my experience with talking to Mormons, I'm not sure it will be such good practice for dealing with JWs. Their methods of reasoning (if you can call it that) are completely different, and they don't get uppity when you challenge them on facts. The Lord has revealed to them personally that it is all true, and that is that.

Ok, an emergency came up last week so I didn't visit with the mormons then. They came today. We had a lovely conversation. They were three very nice girls. They wanted to come back again, but I told them not to. First they'd have to convince me God exists, then they'd have to convince the Bible is an authority, then they'd have to convince me the BOM is an authority. Waste of time for everyone. I thanked them for sharing their faith with me.

They started out asking me a bit about my experiences as a JW. I told them it was a high control group; they speak for God so you have to do whatever they say. The girls laughed and said they could NEVER belong to a group like that. Eye roll.

They asked what I knew about Joseph Smith. I said, "Just the scandalous stuff." They laughed and went on with their spiel. Later, I said that JW leaders had scandals, too, but I wasn't allowed to know about those until I left the JWs. I was surprised that they seemed aware of scandals involving JS. I forget what she said, but she seemed unaware that some of his wives were also married to other men, so I mentioned it. Maybe one of them will be interested enough to look into that.

One gave her testimony about how she asked God for the truth and she had a warm hug-like feeling, etc. I asked, based on the fact that people of many religions, and even non-religious people, have such experiences, how could one know whether it was truly a God-given experience. They said that God could give such an experience and God would never lie to you. Stuff that didn't really answer the question. But maybe one of them will think about the absurdity of that reasoning.

In all, it was a very nice conversation and I'm glad I invited them. It's definitely more relaxing to be on this side of the conversation, rather than the one doing the preaching. Hopefully it will help me be more prepared for the JWs. I definitely have the knowledge to have a more useful discussion with JWs than LDS. But I need to prepare what tack I want to take with them when they show up unexpectedly. Very unexpectedly, considering I've been here a year and no one's so much as left a tract in my door.

Ask them to explain what happened at the Mountain Meadow Massacre and watch them squirm.

I was bred and born in the Salt Lake City, Utah area. I was raised there, too, through High School. My ancestors were Mormon immigrants and pioneered their way to Utah pushing handcarts from Nauvoo, IL. I know whereof I speak.

Do a little research on the Massacre first, of course. I can guarantee you, they will give an answer as predictable as the JW answer when you asked them about 1975.

Side note: When I was a young child of about 11, I lived in Boise, Idaho for a few years and we attended the local Kingdom Hall there. There was a very old anointed JW lady who had no chin: just scar tissue where the chin should be. In my innocence, I asked her about it. She said, "it happened when I was a little girl, and I wrote about it. I will give you the magazine that has my story." And she did. It was one of those "Wild West" magazines. And I read it.

She belonged to a family that lived in the Salt Lake City area when Brigham Young was the de facto dictator there. Her Mormon family did not like the way he ran things, so they decided to peacefully leave and take up stakes further north. But, no! Brigham Young would have none of that. He sent his henchman and a posse (yes, he did have a henchman. Read up on that part, too) after those families to destroy them or bring them back. Lots of guns were fired, and this (then) little girl had her chin blown away with a shotgun off by one of Brigham Young's soldiers.

I met this woman. I read her story. I have lotsa more Mormon stories to tell you, as I grew up as an outsider dub there. Even Catholics were considered cults in a State which was dominated by another wacko Cult.

We had only 1 Catholic (a girl) in my Junior High School of 1,500 pupils!

Well, if they ever come by house I have a to-do list for those elder's. They love to do work for potential converts. Cleaning, painting, etc. Come on over and show me some love - while you do my yard work, of course.